“I agree,” Tyler added.
“Wait a minute, I can take care of myself,” Lucas defended.
“Yeah, and I get that, big bro, but did you forget that you’re pregnant,” Tyler said to him.
“I agree with Tyler,” Seth added.
“Being pregnant doesn’t make me unable to protect myself,” he answered. “Look, I get that everyone is worried about me . . .”
“I think you should do it,” Tucker said.
“What?” he asked, looking at his husband. They’d decided that they were going to do this together and now he wanted him to run and hide.
“Seth, Mayson, and Tyler, go handle whatever you need to find out from January’s files,” Tucker ordered them. “Copy whatever you can from his files and get it to Stephen. Jaxson, Brenden, and Stephen go with Erich and find out what you can from FBI headquarters. Find out every fucking thing that wasn’t in the database about Alphonso Gianni. Look in the deepest darkest hole you can find and get back to me. Asher, you might want to call your wife and let her know what the hell happened here tonight. Also, arrange for a safe place for Lucas and Zoi to stay for a couple of weeks.”
Everyone stood and disappeared doing what Tucker ordered without saying a word.
“Now that you pretty much ordered everyone out of our home, care to tell me what the hell you mean by agreeing with them. I thought we were going to do this together?”
Tucker sighed and sat on the couch. “I don’t want to argue with you anymore tonight. But they are right, and we have so much to lose; I have so much to lose if something were to happen to you.” Whatever anger he was feeling deflated after seeing the fear in Tucker’s eyes. He lost his first family to a senseless tragedy and to lose Lucas, Zoi, and their babies could break Tucker in more ways than one. He sat beside Tucker, resting his head on his shoulder. “I need you, Zoi, and our twins to be completely out of the picture so that we can find Gianni."
“I don’t want to go,” he said honestly.
“I know, and I don’t want you to go either,” Tucker said wrapping an arm around him.
“Do you know how hard this is for me? It feels as if I’m giving in to fear.”
“Don’t feel that way; you are stronger than anyone I know. And yeah, I know how much it’s killing you, but remember you are doing this to keep our family safe.”
“Promise me you will find him quickly and bring us home, back to you.”
Tucker didn’t answer, he raised Lucas’ face and claimed his lips in a kiss that promised more than words could say and all he could do was take all that his lover was offering him.
* * *
